TIME: So you were collecting Pokemon a long time ago! Did you make the insects fight against each other?

Tajiri: No, but sometimes they would eat each other.

TIME: Did you get the idea for Pokemon from these insects?

Tajiri: Yes. Places to catch insects are rare because of urbanization. Kids play inside their homes now, and a lot had forgotten about catching insects. So had I. When I was making games, something clicked and I decided to make a game with that concept. Everything I did as a kid is kind of rolled into one--that's what Pokemon is. Playing video games, watching TV, Ultraman with his capsule monsters--they all became ingredients for the game.